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June 2021 President’s Address

June 2021 President’s Address

Mining club members and their guests who attended our June luncheon gained valuable insights into how to develop meaningful and beneficial partnerships with Indigenous businesses and Traditional Owners.

We received amazing feedback after our experts discussed a range of issues under the umbrella of Indigenous Relations: Communication vs Mis-Communication and Virtual vs Reality.

Thank you again to our panellists Florence Drummond, Brenden Taylor, Emma Garlett, Nevinia Davenport, and our very own WA Mining Club Young Professional committee member Yuluwirri McGrady for sharing your insights and knowledge.

An important facet of the lunch was the opportunity for Indigenous businesses to showcase their products and services. This included:

  • Oaks Civil Construction
  • BOYA Group Pty Ltd
  • Indigenous Emerging Business Forum Aboriginal Corporation
  • MCAC Aboriginal Corporation (Mathew Wilson)
  • Third Space Indigenous Corporation
  • Wonbon Pty Ltd (Darren Morris)
  • Spartan First Pty Ltd
  • Maali Group
  • Kooya Australia Fleet Solutions
  • OSOS Alliance
  • KULBARDI
  • Carey Group.

Heal Country was the theme of 2021 NAIDOC week, and it was great to share stories from our members and reflect on this theme. ”Country is inherent to our identity. It sustains our lives in every aspect – spiritually, physically, emotionally, socially, and culturally. It is more than a place. NAIDOC week is an opportunity to reflect and celebrate on what we do – as individuals and together.”

This is also an opportunity to welcome our 2021/22 WA Mining Club and Young Professionals 2021 Committee:  Craig Hook, Vice-President and Memberships; Sharon Goddard, Secretary; Ian Skelton, Treasurer and Events; Dani Tamati, Memberships and Scholarships; Emanuel Gherardi,  Scholarships; Paul Young, Marketing, Scholarships and Governance; Jordan Pedley, Marketing and Events; Felicity Jones, Memberships and Governance; Jordan Rogers, Chair of Young Professionals and working on Partnerships and Sponsorships; Young Professionals sub-committee Ellen Cha, Vice Chair and sub-committee members Kelsie Brennan; Yalawirri McGrady; Thomas Barrow; Eric Samuel; Josephine Liantono and Josh Snow.

All those who attended our June luncheon took a moment to send our very best wishes to past President Neil Watson. Our thoughts and prayers are with Neil and his family during this difficult time.

The June member of the month was Rowley Pennock. I enjoyed reading about his journey through life from the 11 schools on four continents including Sri Lanka and Jamaica to admitting if he were not involved in mining, he would be a politician.

Congratulations to all those in the industry who were involved in the Seven West Media Resources Technology Showcase.  I am extremely proud of how our mining industry was showcased to the hundreds of children who visited the expo over its two days and took part in so many hands-on experiences as they learned about the incredible opportunities available in our sector. Our children are our future.

Congratulations also to Dr Vanessa Guthrie and Julie Shuttleworth for their well-deserved recognition in the recent Queen’s Birthday honours.

This month we have a panel discussing Skillsets for Modern Mining Workforce. We will cover topics such as:

  • Skill gaps within our industry and what strategies we have in place to help encourage the next generation into the resources sector.
  • Emerging technologies and how we are helping to upskill our employees and also how as an industry we are working with education departments to ensure we won’t have further gaps in future skill sets.
  • What attracts and retains employees in our industry; and
  • How we can attract and encourage our children to look at the resources sector for employment.

Natalie Taylor
WA Mining Club President